#muslim mental health

[thedreamingnoor]

As a revert muslim with a mental illness such as schizophrenia, I have experienced problems doing my daily prayers because my mind is simply so altered that I can't even memorise the words. This has been extremely frustrating for me, especially when I compared myself to other sisters who gave a shahada around the same time as I did. And I know I shouldn't do that, because I have my own times, but that doesn't remove my feeling of being "a bad muslim".

Seeing my frustration and distress, my dad (who is not a muslim) came up with a solution: from now on we will pray together.

Today was our first day practicing it, and it was wonderful. He followed step by step how to do wudu, and when it was time to pray he repeated my words (which he read from a notebook, by the way) and my movements, even those that are complicated with his advanced age. I offered him the possibility to do it sitting down but he wanted to have the same experience as me. Today I am filled with love and with my faith renewed, I could only say Mashallah.

[thoolibul-ilm]

i've always wanted to have a studyblr when i was a teenager and i did just that at 18. upon enrolling into university, told myself to keep it until i got my degree.

my university journey has been rough and ended in me getting kicked out. i've stopped fighting the urge to beg them to take me back because i'm not sure i know how to recover from my attempt in last december when i overdosed in my dorm room and went into a week long medically induced coma.

like phoebe bridgers sings, i know it's for the better. i'm not going to believe this is good for me now and i might not do so for some time but until then, i'll keep saying this over and over again.

i'm still going to keep this studyblr because i do enjoy learning and like studying. additionally, i intend to continue my education and looking back on the brief moments i kept going even when the odds were against me matters. i pray that some day i'll be granted the opportunity to pursue a degree, one that makes me happy.

[brokeinniqab]

I want to remove my niqab. Like stop wearing it. I miss feeling the sun on my face. I'm tired of being faceless - but the issue is. I only want to take it off because of vanity and selfishness.

I miss all of my previous shortcomings.

My Iman is so low rn.

I want to starve again, I was looking in the mirror and I saw myself and after a while of feeling disgusted with what stared back. I noticed how distorted my reflection really looked.

I begged my husband for a scale in the house. He refused.

I miss all of my coping mechanisms.

I feel low, I feel sad.

I don't feel worthy of niqab. I don't feel worthy of hijab. I want to take it off. I miss the looks and glances.

I will have Sabr. I will have Tawakul.

[bluartist]

this goes out to all the people who are being bullied for being who they are

this goes out to all the people who are struggling to survive under oppression

this goes out to all the people who were taken advantage of

this goes out to all the people who are struggling to live

this goes out to all the people who live in such a place where they don't feel safe

this goes out to all the people who don't feel comfortable with their own body

this goes out to all the people who have to experience these kinds of situations

you matter and you always will be. live for everyone you love and for the next generations. i will always be there for you.

[ahl-e-dil]

[ccomelantartidee]

“Ya Allah, why do I have to suffer this much?” But in your duaa’s you begged Him to give you strength.

“Ya Allah, I’m tired, why do I have to go through so much?” But in the night you prayed for patience.

See how every single word you put in your prayers is changing your reality? You asked for strength and patience and Allah gave you hardship to be able to build that strength.

Your ease will come too: don’t forget to pray for it!🤍

🤲🏻 Ya Allah, show me how good life can be.

🤲🏻 Ya Allah, show me how generous people can be.

🤲🏻 Ya Allah, show me how comfortable and abundant life can get.

🤲🏻 Ya Allah, show me how easy it is to connect with you.

🤲🏻 Ya Allah, show me how happy I can be!

[bigenderrevert]

Yeah I've struggled a bit too, but whenever I recognize hardship as a trial, it gets a little bit easier and my faith is strengthened, although this is still really hard, but realizing it's temporary also helps

Still doesn't change the fact that this is incredibly difficult

I feel so.....

I don't know...

I don't feel like there's really any constructive talk about struggle, and coping with struggle in the Muslim community.

The posts *I* come across are all like "shut up you don't have a mental illness you need to be grateful you don't have it worse"

And I just....

While my therapist and I have gone over that being mindful and acknowledging the good in life is, in fact, good for mental health, when I went to her and was like "yeah I'm just... not experiencing any good emotions. I'm nit having any positive emotions or reactions to the things in my life. I think I have anhedonia" amd I told her I was afraid she was going to tell me to "be mindful and focus on gratitude", her actual response was "we can't focus on what isn't there".

Yes, struggles are how Allah tests us, but how are we supposed to get through those tests, when gritting and baring it just.... isn't working? How do wr find meaning our faith, when everything around us is awful? Why hasn't anyone talked about how to use Islam as a way to ACTUALLY cope with mental health and just general life struggles? Why is the first response to the idea of mental illness when making a video on Islam and mental health to say "I'm not talking about mental illness, you're not mentally ill"(legitimately the opening to a video I went to watch that was titled along the lines "mental health and Islam")?

I don't know.

I think that we as a community, especially a religious community, could do SO much better for ourselves and our people(and even non believers) if instead of having the attitude of "shut up about your problems and be grateful it isn't worse", we trying to see what Allah can teach us about coping with mental health and general life struggles beyond just "being grateful it isn't worse". I feel like Allah has SO MUCH MORE to teach us than that.

[thousandyearphantombunker]

i hate the fact the term karen went from describing a bitchy entitled customer to basically the modern day equivalent of calling a woman a harpy (misogynistic as fuck) and that people use the term on people out in public who are at the end of their rope emotionally from stress or a shitty day. I get it just because your having a rough time doesn't mean you get to be a dick but sometimes I think people are seriously lacking in empathy and I get it a lot shit the customer might be dealing with isn't your responsibility but like if a customer is struggling with something simple maybe don't be a dick? Just a thought.

[draree]

“Sins lead to darkness in one's heart. Obedience to Allah is light, but disobedience to Allah is darkness. When one's darkness increases, one's confusion intensifies, until one falls blindly into the world of innovation and misguidance, just like a blind person walking alone at night. This darkness may become deeper and gradually shows up as dullness in the face of the sinner.”

Imam Ibnul Qayyim

[Book:- Spiritual Diseases and Its Cures]

[bulllinachinashop]

May Allah protect me and my family from those who wish to harm us, and may God protect me and my family from those who do not wish to harm us, but harm us anyway. Allahumma Amin. May Allah grant me and my family Jannah. And may Allah forgive me. Allahumma Amin. Pass it on.

[thedreamingnoor]

I am so tired of my entire mental stability depending on pharmaceutical drugs. I don't want it anymore. I know I have to take my pills to avoid another psychotic break, but the process of getting "well" is so exhausting.

[thoolibul-ilm]

parents are the mosques of damaged things

[mashriqiyyah]

Your self sabotage and self neglect are one of the biggest signs you're in state of self hatred. You might think that you love yourself apparently. But when you don't do the things you're supposed to do for your betterment...rather...you keep subjecting yourself to stuff that's ruining your physical and mental health... you're basically pulling up the hate on your being. The shame, guilt and sense of inferiority that's hidden in you. Deep down you think you don't deserve good things so you keep plunging into the bare minimum and worse, the evil things. When you know you should sleep enough to heal but you keep staying up late at night dwelling on actions that aren't good for your body and soul. You know you should maintain a diet that can meet the needs of your body but you keep skipping meals or binge eating junk. You know you should limit your screen time, stop scrolling randomly on your apps but you keep wasting time to distract yourself from stuff that's bothering you. You avoid facing your thoughts with conviction and let them wreck havoc in your mind. You allow negative assumptions and patterns to repeat. You don't allow yourself to get up after a relapse thinking you deserve to suffer. You avoid healing. You take care of everything and everyone around you but keep putting your needs aside. You don't rush towards Allah as you should. You think you're far away from Him and not good enough to stand before Him.

You do all of it subconsciously yet in a state of complete persuasion.

~ mashriqiyyah

[zaurae]

𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐆𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐇𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐭𝐬

˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚ 𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒖𝒑 𝒃𝒂𝒅 𝒉𝒂𝒃𝒊𝒕𝒔 ˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚

First off, giving up an old bad habit is difficult, that I know; however, it is not impossible. I've had a lot of difficulties in my life where I repeated the same habit over and over again and I thought for me I would never overcome them. But you know what changed? trying. I tried my best every day and even if I failed, I slowly accepted that I am not perfect and I am only human. That is who we are, and that is why Allah the Almighty is so merciful, because Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala himself knows we humans will slip up and fall. But listen, it's not impossible and as annoying as it is, as long as you keep trying, keep having that good intentions of becoming better and to do better; trust me those habits will be history.

Whenever we do something for the sake of our lord, everything works out, everything clicks together. These habits you have won't be vanished for one day of course, or a week, it's a process--a journey that we all need to accept. Think of it as a fitness journey, you won't get fit in one day. These things take time and after feeling so negative about myself I realized as long as you try, asking Allah for help, and doing the most you can--it is possible.

I hope these tips do help you, and everyone is different as everyone has different struggles and bad habits. These will either help you or guide you to overcome those habits in your own way. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala make it easy for us.

⤑ 𝑰𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑸𝒖𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝑶𝒇 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑵𝒂𝒎𝒂𝒛

I have seen a video of someone asking a scholar why do I still commit these bad deeds/habits if I am performing my five daily prayers? and the answer to this was the quality of your namaz. Do you rush into prayer, are you zoning out, are you not on time for namaz, and etc.

There is of course a lot to this but the quality of your namaz and how much time you spend with our lord does affect our hearts.

One of many ways to re-connect with our lord to become better with our daily prayers are:

Performing your prayers on time (I understand how our laziness could get in the way or how we are so into whatever we were doing before and cannot detach ourselves from this but, a quote I read and did help me at times like this was "Put your time and effort to Allah, and Allah will put his time and effort to you too.")

Recite a dua/surah after your namaz (Ayetel kursi, a repentance dua, La ilaha illallah, wahdahu la sharika lahu, lahul-mulku wa lahul hamdu, yuhyi wa yumitu, wa huwa ala kulli shay'in qadir, and etc.)

Perform your wudhu 15-10 minutes earlier (Let me tell you when I did this it was so effective. When you perform wudhu earlier, you are in a clear-minded state and are purified. Along with you being on time for namaz, this additionally helps you become more focused during namaz)

Perform Dhikr (Subhanallah, Alhamdullilah, Astaghfirullah, La illaha illallah, Allahu Akbar)

Learn the meaning of what you are reciting (When you learn and understand the meaning of the surah/dua's you are reciting, being focused becomes easier and the connection becomes stronger)

⤑ 𝑫𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔

Create distractions for yourself to not commit those deeds/habits!

Do what you love and enjoy (Go back to those hobbies you used to enjoy! or hang out with your friends and family.)

Educate yourself (Look up interesting things; Learn something new; Watch an islamic podcast)

Get to work (If you have any outstanding work or homework, get straight to it.)

Learn a new surah (Let's say you REALLY have nothing else to do, then what better way to spend that time in something worthy--learning a surah!)

Go outside and enjoy nature!

⤑ 𝑩𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑮𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝑯𝒂𝒃𝒊𝒕𝒔

Along with giving up those bad habits, create new good habits to incorporate in your day-to-day life!

Each day, add something in your routine--even if its small! For instance, get back to that skin care routine you were so lazy to do; or go on that walk you kept saying later to; or even folding your clothes and organizing your closet. Each time you add a good habit to do, you become distracted to those bad habits, have less time do commit them, and on the long run you are creating habits for a better difference!

With this in mind, please do not do everything at once. To prevent a negative on-going cycle, just like that book "Atomic Habits" said, that "If you can get 1% better each day for one year, you'll end up with 37 times better by the time you're done."

A habit to always include and progress even more is repentance! Recite and repeat Astaghfirullah; Ya Gaffar and Ya Gafoor; as well as the repentance surah's! Before doing anything, always say Bismillah and whether you're doing chores or scrolling on your phone, always say Astaghfirullah. This helps you be more aware of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala!

And lastly, remember you can do it!

: ̗̀➛ Allahumma musarrifal-qulubi, sarrif qulubana 'ala ta'atika

O Allah! Controller of the hearts, direct our hearts to Your obedience.

[she-is-trying-to-heal]

I don't believe that God has a physical form.

As a Muslim, we know that God doesn't have a physical form that we can see or touch yet. But while I lay here with a dull ache in my heart, I tried imagining being held in someone's arms. Something to soothe that ache. But then I got this image in my head. A warm blanket of light, of noor, being wrapped around me. I felt a warm feeling spread inside of my body.

That's the same feeling that I used to have whenever I prayed Tahajjud.

God will find a way back into your life and no matter what, you will always end up appreciating it.

[leezuhh]

it's crazy to me that there are people out there who still think that media and fiction do not affect how people think at all